Image: US Vice President JD Vance (left) meets with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem, October 22, 2025. The meeting at the time focused on Gaza ceasefire efforts; recent debates have since emerged over the scope of the Iran war and the question of regime change. (Nathan Howard/The New York Times via AP.)

Attempts at regime change strengthened Iran’s hardliners.

The desire for regime change in Iran has, in recent years, pushed parts of the Iranian diaspora in the United States — as well as voices in Israel — toward a more hawkish stance on Tehran.

The underlying assumption was straightforward: applying military pressure would destabilize the regime, create a vacuum, and enable the emergence of a more moderate or democratic government.

However, the reality that has unfolded since the start of the war on February 28 — with joint US-Israeli airstrikes — points to a nearly opposite outcome.

Already in early March, I argued that attempting regime change during wartime could lead not to moderation, but to internal radicalization. The elimination of senior officials — especially a central authority........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)